In 2010, the Department of Defense issued an updated Strategic and Critical Materials report to Congress, highlighting risks from U.S. reliance on foreign sources for certain minerals needed for defense systems. The report helped frame the next decade’s policy shift toward treating some minerals as supply-chain security issues, not just commodities.
In 2013, Congress considered major bills aimed at speeding permitting and coordinating a federal approach to minerals viewed as strategically important. While these proposals did not become the single comprehensive law advocates sought at the time, they signaled growing bipartisan concern about mineral supply vulnerability.
On December 20, 2017, President Trump signed Executive Order 13817, directing federal agencies to define “critical minerals,” publish a list, and develop a government-wide strategy to secure supplies. This order created a clear organizing structure for later list updates, agency programs, and DPA-related investments.
On May 18, 2018, the Department of the Interior published the first Final List of Critical Minerals (35 mineral commodities) in the Federal Register. The list provided a shared reference point for agencies and industry when prioritizing research, permitting attention, and supply-chain actions.
On June 4, 2019, the Department of Commerce released A Federal Strategy to Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical Minerals. It organized government action into calls-to-action and recommendations spanning research, downstream processing, international cooperation, mapping, and permitting.
On September 30, 2020, President Trump signed Executive Order 13953, declaring a national emergency related to U.S. reliance on critical minerals from foreign adversaries and directing an investigation and recurring reporting. The order elevated mineral supply chains from a long-term competitiveness issue to an urgent national security priority.
In December 2020, USGS released a technical report describing U.S. import reliance patterns and additional supply-risk factors, such as indirect and “embedded” reliance through imported components. This analysis supported federal decision-making on which mineral supply chains were most exposed to disruption.
On February 1, 2021, the Department of Defense announced a DPA Title III award to Lynas (via Lynas USA) to establish domestic separation capacity for light rare earth elements in Texas. The project was part of a broader effort to rebuild U.S. capability across the “mine-to-magnet” supply chain for defense and commercial uses.
On February 24, 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order 14017, directing 100-day and longer-term reviews of critical supply chains. This expanded the critical minerals agenda into a broader supply-chain resilience program and set up follow-on actions across agencies.
On February 24, 2022, USGS published the 2022 Final List of Critical Minerals (50 minerals), updating the federal baseline using a methodology tied to the Energy Act of 2020. Regular updates mattered because “criticality” changes with supply concentration, technology demand, and geopolitical risk.
On March 31, 2022 (announced April 5), President Biden signed a determination allowing DPA Title III authorities to strengthen domestic mining and processing for large-capacity battery materials. The determination specifically cited minerals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, graphite, and manganese as key supply-chain vulnerabilities.
Beginning in fiscal year 2022, the Department of Energy implemented the Battery Materials Processing Grants program funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The program aimed to expand U.S. processing capacity—an often-cited weak link where raw materials may be mined domestically but refined abroad.
On September 19, 2023, DOD announced an agreement to help establish high-volume U.S. production of rare earth permanent magnets, a critical component in many defense platforms. This moved beyond raw materials toward downstream manufacturing, where supply disruptions can stop production even if ores are available.
On September 19, 2023, DOD also announced a contract to build an industrial-scale U.S. capability to separate and process heavy rare earth elements. Heavy rare earths are used in specialized high-performance magnets; building separation capacity addressed a major bottleneck in the U.S. rare earth supply chain.
On January 17, 2025, DOD announced a DPA Title III award to support recovery of rare earth elements from recycled electronic waste. The project highlighted a complementary strategy to mining: using recycling to reduce import dependence and create additional domestic supply streams.
In 2025, the Department of the Interior released a final 2025 List of Critical Minerals, adding minerals including copper, silver, uranium, and others based on updated data and interagency input. The updated list served as a capstone for the 2010–2025 period, reflecting how U.S. strategy broadened from rare earths into a larger set of minerals tied to defense, electronics, and energy technologies.
United States critical minerals strategies and Defense Production Act actions (2010–2025)